Time Can Kill
by Cherry Lemonade
Summary: Harry travels back in time to when Sirius and his friends are young and students at Hogwarts. However, Harry causes Lily to fall in love with Sirius, threatening his future existence. Can Harry correct his mistakes before it's too late?
1. Impossible Dream

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in this story. ;)

This is my first ever story here on FF.net! I hope you all like it! Please R&R. :D

**Chapter 1**

"Harry!" hissed Hermione, poking Harry in the arm. "Harry, snap out of it!"

"Wh-what?" said Harry with a jerk. He had been daydreaming about his godfather again. This time, he'd dreamt he was lying beside the Great Lake with a teenage Sirius. It was a nice, sunny afternoon, and students were seen frolicking out on the school grounds, enjoying the end of exams. Harry and Sirius were on the grass, gazing up at the clouds, taking in the fresh air and the soft swishing sound of waves in the lake, discussing their plans for the summer.

"So, how about you come over to stay at my house this summer, and we can spend weekends surfing at the beach?" said the young, handsome Sirius, running his fingers through his smooth, black hair.

"Sounds great to me," grinned Harry. "I'm not great in the water, but who knows? I might come across some cute girls while I brush up on my surfing…"

Sirius chortled. "Well, you won't be the only one, I can guarantee that!"

The two boys chuckled gaily, then fell silent, enjoying the soothing sounds pervading the atmosphere. Suddenly, Harry felt a poke in his arm, followed by a female voice in his ear saying, "Harry, wake up!"

"Wh-what?" said Harry dazedly. Before he knew it, he was back in his Potions classroom, chin in his hand and his cauldron steaming alarmingly.

"Harry!" Hermione repeated. "You've neglected your Melting Potion!"

"Oh, no…" Harry said helplessly, getting up and watching as the sticky liquid oozed out of the cauldron and onto the floor. On impulse, he turned and tried to block his cauldron from Professor Snape's view, but it was impossible to do so, for several Slytherins were already pointing and sneering at his mess.

"C'mon, mate," Ron said hastily. "We'd better try to wipe this mess out before--"

"POTTER!" Snape yelled. "What the hell have you done _now_?!" With a swish of his cloak, Snape got out of his chair and flew to Harry's cauldron.

"I'm--I'm sorry--Professor," Harry stuttered. "I--"

"This has gotten out of hand, Potter!" Snape said, ignoring the Slytherins' jeers. "You have been performing ten times worse than you normally do now that you are in your sixth year, something I'd never have thought possible given your already despicable performance during the past five years you've spent in this school!"

The Slytherins smirked and sneered. Harry, Ron, and Hermione watched helplessly as Harry's Melting Potion ran through his cauldron, melting it, spreading across the floor. By the time the cauldron was no more, the potion had run across the entire length of the room, melting table legs and ingredient jars. The Slytherins broke into peals of laughter.

Snape was livid. "_SILENCE!_" he cried. The Slytherins stopped laughing, and the whole room fell silent. Snape stared disgustedly at Harry and looked down at him from the top of his crooked nose.

"It seems any hope of you improving in my class has vanished, Potter," whispered Snape, although Harry was sure his every word was audible throughout the classroom. "It also seems like no amount of detention or persuasion will be enough to make you get what I'm trying to teach you into your big fat head."

A few meters away, Draco Malfoy and his goons, Crabbe and Goyle, sniggered as they stood still, enjoying one of their favorite past-times at Hogwarts: seeing Harry get scolded by his most loathed teacher.

"I think I've endured enough of your stupidity," Snape continued, the coldest and most dangerous glint in his black eyes. "I want you to get out of my classroom."

Harry gaped at him, trying to absorb the full effect of Snape's words.

"YOU HEARD ME!" Snape spat. "YOU'RE HOPELESS, POTTER! I DON'T WANT TO SEE YOU IN THIS CLASSROOM EVER AGAIN! GET--OUT--NOW!"

Harry opened his mouth to speak, but no sound came out. He wanted to say something; he wanted to defend himself, but he knew the only thing he could do was to leave and spare himself further humiliation. Sensing every pair of eyes in the room focused on him, he turned and glanced miserably at Ron and Hermione, who gazed back at him woefully, as he marched miserably across the room and out the door to the dungeons.


	2. Time Warp

****

Chapter 2

Harry stepped out into the cold corridor, now fully aware of what had just happened. He had been permanently thrown out of Potions class, all because he had been thinking about Sirius. But thinking about Sirius was not something he could prevent doing, because Sirius was the only person he cared the world for, and now he was gone.

Seeing Sirius die just before the end of Harry's fifth year was the hardest thing for Harry. He had gone back to Privet Drive with a heavy heart, and although he was able to join the Weasleys at The Burrow after a few days into summer vacation, he still could not help thinking about his godfather. He hated himself for falling for Voldemort's trap, but there was nothing he could do now that Sirius had suffered the consequence of his actions. Harry was also lonely that Sirius, his only relative who genuinely cared for him, was not going to be with him any longer.

Now, in his sixth year, Harry's grades were slipping. Harry was perfectly aware that it was thoughts of Sirius that were causing his grades to plummet, but he didn't want to care. He felt he didn't have to be good anymore; he didn't have to strive for anything now that Sirius was gone. Ron and Hermione had always been there to console him, which helped a bit, but nothing so far had been able to lift the heavy load in his heart. If only he could just talk to Sirius again, to see him one more time and bid him goodbye properly…

Harry kicked the stone wall furiously, desperate to vent his frustration. His toe throbbed in pain, but Harry didn't care. He stomped out of the dungeons, across the Great Hall, and up the staircase. He was just on his way to the Gryffindor common room when he ran into Albus Dumbledore along one of the corridors.

"Ouch--Oh, sorry, Professor Dumbledore," said Harry gloomily. "I--I wasn't looking where I was going--"

"That's alright, Harry," replied Dumbledore calmly. He looked normal now, not at all like the sad, aged man he appeared to be in the previous year. He looked like a new man. Now, there was a twinkling but serious gleam in his eyes. "I would like to speak with you, Harry," he said soberly.

"I--" Harry began. Normally, he'd have declined, but there was just too much pent-up anger in him that he decided it might be good to talk to someone. "Well--okay."

They turned into a different corridor and stopped before a large, stone gargoyle, which guarded a large door behind it. This was the entrance to Dumbledore's office.

"Bobotuber pus," Dumbledore recited. The gargoyle sprang up and moved to the side, granting entry.

Harry and Dumbledore stepped over the threshold, then ascended the staircase to a large, brass door with a griffin knocker on it.

"Come inside, Harry," said Dumbledore, opening the door and waving his hand dramatically.

Harry stepped inside. Dumbledore's office looked the same as before, a large, spacious carpeted room with a classy writing desk in the middle. Portraits of former Hogwarts headmasters lined the cream-colored walls. Several silver, magical instruments sat on elegant end tables and cabinets. In one corner of the office was Fawkes, the phoenix who had saved Harry's life in his second year.

"Have a seat," Dumbledore said cordially, indicating a cozy purple chair beside his writing desk. Harry sat down as Dumbledore took his seat behind the desk. The headmasters in the portraits, who were normally awake, were dozing peacefully in their frames.

"Now, I know that you haven't been performing very well in your classes this year," said Dumbledore seriously.

Harry stared down at the floor. "I--I was just kicked out of Potions class today."

Dumbledore did not seem surprised by what he said, but said, "That can be dealt with…later.

"I know there's something bothering you, Harry," he continued gently. "And I'm almost certain that 'something' is the thought of your lost godfather, Sirius."

Harry sighed heavily. "Yes."

Dumbledore gazed at Harry from behind his half-moon spectacles, a faint glimmer in his blue eyes. "I'm guessing you're wishing you could talk to Sirius again," he went on. Harry just nodded in reply.

"I must tell you, Harry, that there is no way to bring dead people back to life, not even with magic."

"I know that," said Harry, rather irritably.

"Dead people may choose to turn into ghosts and live like ghosts forever, but others choose to move on," Dumbledore continued calmly. "Of course, Sir Nicholas may have told you that."

Harry was surprised to find that Dumbledore knew about his talk with Nearly Headless Nick, but Dumbledore just smiled. "We both know Sirius cannot come back to us," he said kindly. "But there _is _a way to talk to him once again."

"Yeah, I kn--_there is??_" Harry said incredulously.

Dumbledore nodded. "It is a complex and very difficult method of traveling back in time, and in this case, it will allow _you_ to see and talk to Sirius."

Harry leaned forward. If what Dumbledore's saying is true--and doable--, he thought, he may finally be able to talk to Sirius again, and he may not have to carry on his life of anger and sorrow.

"Do you mean," Harry said, his nerves wracking, "that I can use a--a Pensieve to talk to Sirius?"

"No," said Dumbledore, shaking his head. "Remember that a Pensieve may only be used to travel into a person's _memory_. Although you will be able to see Sirius if you traveled to one of your memories, he, on the other hand, will not know you exist while you are in that memory.

"Neither can a Time Turner be used," he went on, practically reading Harry's thoughts. "A Time Turner must be acquired from and registered at the Ministry of Magic, and doing so will take time. Neither can we let the Ministry know about this. Besides, a Time Turner only repeats hours of the day within a specific time frame. Too much time has passed between now and the time period I'm planning for you to travel to."

Harry shifted in his seat as he listened, wondering what particular time period Dumbledore was talking about.

"What I have in mind," the old wizard continued, "is a diverse form of magic called Talimancy. It enables one to go back in time--back to any time period whatsoever--and alter events within that time period. One who travels back in time with Talimancy can interact with the people and surroundings in the time he has traveled in, and his actions will affect the world around him at one point or another."

"S--so," Harry breathed, "do you think I can go back in time--go back to when I thought Sirius was trapped in the Ministry of Magic, and…well, _not_ go to rescue him? If I can do that, Sirius won't be dead when I come back to the present!" He paused, thinking. If only he had not gone to try to rescue Sirius that day…It was _he_, Harry, who had brought about Sirius' death, and he was determined to fix what he had done.

Dumbledore shook his head sadly. "Harry, Sirius has passed into a different plane of existence. No amount of traveling back in time and altering events can bring back one who has died and has moved on." The twinkle in his eyes was sad. He regretted saying the awful truth, but he knew Harry had to know. "It will also be dangerous to go back to that time, for _your _life, and the whole wizarding world's safety against Voldemort, were on the line back then."

Harry nodded, breathing heavily.

"Talimancy is a difficult form of magic to master, Harry," Dumbledore explained, "but I do believe that you can master it if you just set your mind to it. It will take at least two weeks to master, provided you practice everyday. I will be your teacher, and you must promise to devote two hours everyday to learning this branch of magic."

Harry nodded grimly. He didn't know how he could pull up his grades while trying to practice such a difficult form of magic, but he had to do it--for Sirius and for himself.

"We start tomorrow afternoon," Dumbledore concluded. "Any questions, Harry?"

"Er, yes, just one," replied Harry. "Er--what, exactly, is the time period I'm going back to when I've mastered Talimancy?"

Dumbledore smiled. "I will explain tomorrow. For now, you need a break. Go on to your common room and get some rest, and hopefully you'll be refreshed by tomorrow morning."

Harry nodded, got up, and crossed the room to the door. He exited through the door guarded by the gargoyle and set off for the Gryffindor common room.

Ron and Hermione were sitting beside the fireplace, talking seriously. Harry went over and flopped down on a chair beside them.

"Where were you, Harry?" asked Ron, concerned.

"At Dumbledore's office," replied Harry. He launched into the story of how he had a talk with Dumbledore at his office, and how he'd been scheduled to have Talimancy practice everyday after class for at least two weeks.

Hermione looked grim. "This is really dangerous if you ask me, Harry! Mastering Talimancy would be pretty easy--for you, I mean--, but _traveling back in time_? What if you screw something up and drastically change something in the present? Why, you could very well threaten your own existence doing this!"

Harry sighed. "Look, Hermione, Dumbledore suggested this whole thing. And if _he_ suggested it, that means he believes I can do this without screwing up. Besides, I _need _to do this--for my own peace of mind."

"Alright, mate," said Ron, as the trio got up and headed to their dormitories, although he and Hermione still looked worried. They knew Harry'd have to work extra hard now that he had practice every afternoon, but they committed themselves to helping him cope in every way possible.

Harry never knew how he would have been able to get through the next few weeks without Ron's and Hermione's help, and he was glad he at least didn't have Potions to deal with anymore. After classes, he'd go straight to an old Transfiguration classroom on the second floor to meet Dumbledore, and they'd start a new round of hard practice. By the time Harry got to the common room, Ron and Hermione'd be ready to give Harry his homework, which they helped him answer every night.

Talimancy was, indeed, complex and very difficult, and required casting a spell in the air to produce a time warp, which was a blackish, liquid-like hole in the air through which one could pass to end up in another time period. After five days, Harry had managed to create a small time warp, which he passed through to land back in the Transfiguration classroom, only where he had been five minutes later.

Harry wondered why he never saw himself (his "past state," that is) whenever he went back in time. Dumbledore explained that unlike with the Time Turner, he who goes back in time carries all of himself with him, hence he will not see himself where he was in the past. Harry never fully understood the mystery of this, but didn't spend too much time thinking it over.

Dumbledore explained that after Harry mastered this, he'd be able to travel back to when Sirius and his friends (James and Lupin included) were still young and students at Hogwarts. This elated Harry, but Dumbledore warned him that he'd have to be as careful as possible while he was in that time period. He reminded him that his actions directly affected other events at one point or another. The purpose of traveling back to this particular time period, Dumbledore explained, was to give Harry a chance to experience what it would be like to be around his godfather when he was the same age he was. Dumbledore also speculated that while Harry was around his dad, he could settle his dispute with Severus Snape once and for all, making Harry's present school life much easier than it currently was.

The most important thing Harry had to learn about Talimancy was traveling back to the present. Dumbledore explained that in short-spanned time-travel (like when Harry traveled back in time to five minutes ago), Harry could let the five minutes pass and end up again in the present. However, Harry would be traveling back to nearly 25 years ago. Harry would then have to cast a charm on himself before traveling to the past. This charm would "program" him to go back to the present after an amount of time has been spent in the "past" state. He'd have to complete all his business in the past by the time he was due to travel back to the present.

"So let me get that straight," Harry said slowly. "Before I go through the time warp to travel back in time, I'd have to cast a charm on myself, right?"

"Right," said Dumbledore, nodding.

"After I cast the charm, I step through the time warp and go back in time to when Sirius was young…But after a certain amount of time goes by, the charm I cast on myself will make me go back to the present, right?"

"Exactly."

"So I'd have to have done everything I wanted to do in the past by the time the charm takes place and I go back to the present," Harry concluded, his face screwed up trying to remember the details.

"Very good, Harry," said Dumbledore, smiling. "I believe just a few more practice sessions are needed, and you'll be all ready."

After a few more days of practice, Harry had mastered creating a time warp and casting the charm he needed to go back to the present. The night before he had planned to travel back in time, he sat at the common room with Ron and Hermione by the fire.

"So, Harry," said Ron, snuggling into one of the large chairs in front of the fire. "Any idea what you want to do while you're in the past?"

"Well, aside from spending time with Sirius, my dad, and Lupin," Harry replied thoughtfully, "I'm going to try to stop making Snape and my dad hate each other."

Ron chuckled. "That's a good idea! I reckon Snape won't be so harsh towards you if you can make that happen!"

"But when are you coming back to the present?" Hermione asked.

"After two months," said Harry promptly. "I figure that'll be enough to sort that thing out with Snape and my dad, and…to bid Sirius a proper farewell."

"Sounds good," said Ron, blowing his hands and warming them before the fire. "You can even see your mom, right?"

"Yeah," said Harry brightly. "That's one of the things I'm looking forward to!"

"Just be careful, okay, Harry?" said Hermione, giving Harry a hug. "Don't get yourself into trouble!"

"I won't," Harry promised. He looked at each of them in turn. "If this works fine, I can live my life normally now. But I know it'll work; I know it."

He then got up and headed over to the dormitories. "I better get a good night's sleep to prepare for tomorrow," he told them. "I'll see you later!"

With that, he disappeared into the dormitory, jumped in bed, and dozed off. He dreamt he was in the Great Lake, swimming happily with his dad and Sirius.

The next day dawned bright and early. Harry got up, had breakfast, and headed to his classes with Ron and Hermione. In the afternoon, they accompanied him as he went to the common room to get his trunk, then walked out onto the grounds.

Harry looked around, then pointed to a long, clear stretch of grass to the right. "I can cast the time warp somewhere over there. I can't travel in and out of Hogwarts by Apparating and such, but once I get far enough from the grounds, I can do so."

He, Ron, and Hermione trudged along the grass, moving farther away from the school. When they had walked on for about a hundred meters, Harry stopped.

"This is good enough," he said, dropping his trunk on the ground and whipping out his wand. "Well, this is it."

"Good luck, Harry!" said Ron, patting Harry on the back.

"Yes, Harry, take care!" Hermione said, grinning broadly. "I know you'll do great!"

Harry grinned, then pointed the tip of his wand at his head and cast the charm, which would bring him back to the present after two months. Just like the charm Mad-Eye Moody cast on him in the previous year, a cold, liquid sensation ran through Harry, as though cold water were being poured on him. Next, with a flick of his wand, he recited the time warp spell. A large, spinning something that looked like a mini black hole appeared before them.

Harry stashed the wand in his robes, picked up his trunk, and, with a final wave at his friends, stepped through the time warp. The black-blue color closed around him, and he felt himself spinning and moving forward at breakneck speed, his trunk dangling behind him from his arm. Wind (although Harry didn't know where it was coming from) rushed loudly in his ears. The trip took only a few seconds.

Before he knew it, Harry was on solid ground, hidden behind some trees. Rather shaken by the trip, he dusted himself off, gripped his trunk tightly, and stepped out of the trees. He emerged on the Hogwarts grounds, and saw that it was just as lively as he saw it before, with the lush, green grass, the sparkling water in the Great Lake, the fresh flowers, and the gigantic castle with its glass windows. Students were out on the grounds, chatting and laughing merrily, probably passing time before their next subject started.

He had landed in the boundary between the grounds and the Forbidden Forest, Harry realized, and that explained how he ended up near all those trees.

Just as he was about to head over and step through the great oak doors leading into the Great Hall, Harry heard a voice, a young, cheery voice belonging to a boy.

"Hey!" the voice cried out. "Hey, do you wanna get that?"

Harry looked and saw a book lying on the grass before him. "Er--sure," he said, picking up the book. He turned to give it to the owner, then gaped at the person standing in front of him.

It was 16-year old Sirius, with the same long, black hair Harry knew, his cheerful black eyes staring back at him.


	3. Dastardly Dispute

Chapter 3 is now up! Thanks so much for your reviews; my "thank you"s and author's notes are at the bottom of the page. Enjoy!

****

**Chapter 3**

Harry continued to stare at his young, handsome godfather, at a loss for words.

Sirius chuckled. "What's the matter?" he said, reaching for the book. "You look like you've seen a ghost!"

Harry shook himself, then grinned. "Sorry, I guess my mind was somewhere else. Here," he added, handing Sirius what turned out to be a copy of _The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection_.

Sirius shook his head, laughing. "You must be new here." He held out his hand to shake Harry's. "I'm Sirius Black, and I'm a sixth year."

"I'm--er--Michael Preston," said Harry, shaking Sirius' hand and berating himself for coming up with such a weird name. Nonetheless, he decided it'd be best not to let anyone in this time period know his true identity. "I'm, uh--an exchange student."

"Cool," said Sirius, smiling. "From what school?"

Harry thought quickly. "A school not very far from here," he said, grinning casually so as not to make Sirius suspicious.

Sirius laughed. "Alright, then. So, how long are you staying here, Michael?" he asked, as the two of them walked across the school grounds towards a group of other sixth years, who were huddled under a chestnut tree.

"Two months," said Harry, without skipping a beat. "I write for my school paper, and I'm here for an article I'm working on, featuring wizarding schools in England. I'm including a special highlight on Hogwarts."

Sirius beamed. "Well, you'll definitely have a lot to write about, Michael," he said proudly. "Hogwarts is great! I'm sure you'll enjoy your stay here."

"Thanks," replied Harry. They reached the pack of sixth year boys, all of whom were Gryffindors. One of them had spiky, grayish hair, gray eyes, and a long, slender face. Another had a round, shiny face and brown, wiry hair. And the third boy, Harry noticed, look just like him.

He had the same black, unruly hair Harry did. He had deep brown eyes and a nicely-set jaw, and was just about an inch taller than Harry. With glasses, he would have passed for a cloned Harry anytime.

"Ah, Padfoot," said the spiky-haired boy, looking up from a book he was reading. "About time you came back!"

"Yeah, well," said Sirius, running a hand through his black hair, "I stopped for a little chit-chat with this kid right here." He pointed to Harry. "Guys, this is Michael Preston. Michael, meet my three best friends."

The three boys waved. "This is Remus Lupin," Sirius explained, pointing to the spiky-haired boy. "This is Peter Pettigrew," he said, indicating the mousy-haired youth, who, Harry noticed, was way shorter than everyone else in the group. "And this," Sirius said proudly, "is my _very_ best friend, James Potter."

James grinned at Harry. He apparently couldn't help commenting on the striking resemblance between them, for he said, "Wow, you're practically my mirror image!"

Harry giggled. "Funny, isn't it?"

"Michael's an exchange student from another school," Sirius went on. "He's doing an article on wizarding schools, and--you guessed it--Hogwarts is one of them."

"Excellent!" the other three chimed at once.

"Will we be able to read the article anytime soon?" James asked eagerly.

"Oh, I think so. I'll let you know sometime after my two-month stay here," said Harry. He glanced around the grounds, taking in the lively, fresh air and feeling as if the place really _was _new to him.

"We're all from the Gryffindor house," Remus explained. "See the gold and red symbol with a lion on our robes?" He pointed to the Gryffindor symbol on the left breast of his robes.

Harry, acting curious, asked, "What are the other houses called?"

"Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin," replied Sirius promptly. "Ravenclaw houses all the smart kids."

"Those in Hufflepuff are the loyal and hardworking ones," Peter put in.

"And the Slytherins," said James darkly, "are the most rotten of the lot."

"What do you mean?" Harry asked.

"Well," said Sirius simply, "they're what you can call _bad seeds_. Not very nice people, that lot, and definitely not very bright, either." James, Lupin, Peter, and Harry broke into laughter.

"Er--what did Remus call Sirius? _Padfoot_?" Harry asked, just for the heck of it.

"Oh, yeah," said Remus, laughing. "That's Sirius' nickname. He's Padfoot, I'm Moony, James is Prongs, and Peter's Wormtail. We rarely call each other by our real names; we always refer to each other by our nicknames." He laughed amusedly.

"Why don't we show Michael around?" James offered. "He's new here, after all."

"Yeah, that's a good idea," said Remus, turning to Harry. "C'mon, Michael, we can start the tour here." Chuckling, the four boys led Harry towards the Great Lake.

"This," said Remus, pointing to the crystal-clear water, "is Hogwarts' Great Lake. See that big creature swimming in the water? That's the giant squid."

Harry looked into the water, and to his surprise, he was in awe at the enormous squid. He'd seen it a dozen times, but he never really noticed its true size.

"Uh huh," said James. "The squid's alwa--"

He broke off suddenly, and stood still, his eyes transfixed at a spot near the lake somewhere to their left. Harry whipped around to see what James was staring at, and soon recognized that it was a _who_.

She was a beautiful, slender girl, with auburn hair and sparkling green eyes. Harry thought she was very pretty. She was seated with three or four friends at the edge of the lake, her right hand swirling in the water, making small, wavy shapes. The girls were in deep, animated conversation, and seemed to have noticed James's group standing at the other end of the lake.

Sirius snorted. "Snap out of it, Prongs," he said, elbowing his friend in the ribs. "You ain't got a chance with Lily, and you know it."

It then occurred to Harry that the girl who had caught James's eye was his own mother, Lily Evans.

"OW!" James yelped. "Look, I _know_ nothing's ever going to happen between me and Lily, but how can I help it? She's so beautiful!"

Remus rolled his eyes. "Don't bother, Padfoot, we're just dealing with a little teenage crush. Prongs'll get over her soon."

"This is not just a 'little teenage crush,'" said James indignantly.

"Er, who is she?" asked Harry. This was his chance to see _first-hand _what had really happened between his mother and father when they were still teenagers.

"Only the prettiest girl in the whole school," said James. "Lily Evans."

"She's a Gryffindor fifth year," said Sirius. "Prongs has had his eye on her for…what? Three years now?"

"We think Lily likes him, too," chuckled Remus. "Only we can't be so sure. Lily's never talked to James at all, ain't that right, huh, Prongs?"

James rolled his eyes at Remus. "She's just shy, that's all."

The rest of the boys exploded into peals of laughter. Lily and her group of friends had turned and were now staring at James and the rest, whispering and giggling madly.

"You know," said Sirius, "that friend of Lily's…what's her name? Arianne? She's kinda cute. No, wait a sec--she _is_ cute! I think I'm gonna go talk to her."

Sirius started over towards Lily's group, but Peter held him back. "Oh, no, loverboy, we're still in the middle of giving Michael a tour of Hogwarts."

"Oh, yeah," said Sirius, turning to Michael. "Let's go inside the castle, then…LET'S GO, PRONGS!" he yelled at James, who was still staring at Lily.

"Okay," said James, grinning. The five headed for the great oak doors, Harry still carrying his trunk. Lily and her friends chortled and resumed talking.

They got to the grand entrance hall, with the huge marble staircase leading up to the numerous castle corridors, and the doors to the Great Hall to their left.

"I'm hungry," said Peter. "Why don't we get a bite at the Great Hall?"

"Sounds good to me," said Sirius. "Now that we're away from those girls, I'm starting to notice how hungry I am," he said, grinning. "Come on, Michael."

They entered the hall, and Harry saw all the four house tables, exactly as they were in the future. Several students were seated at tables, munching on cakes and gulping down apple juice. A few girls looked up at Harry, then whispered curiously.

Remus laughed. "Looks like you're catching some girls' attention already, Michael!"

As they sat down at the Gryffindor table and grabbed some chocolate chip cookies off a platter, Sirius growled lowly. "Oh, look, boys--it's _Snivellus_."

The other three looked up immediately. Harry turned his head and saw, with a weird pang, Severus Snape strutting through the doors and towards one end of the Gryffindor table.

"That, my friend," said Sirius to Harry, "is the greatest slime ball in the history of this school: the one and only Severus Snape."

Harry squinted to see Snape flop down on the bench, take a slice of raspberry pie, and bury his nose in a very thick textbook.

"We've all hated him ever since we laid eyes on him," said James, his face split into an evil grin. "We try to make his life as miserable as possible."

"Speak for yourself," said Remus. "I don't hate him, and I don't waste my time playing childish tricks on someone totally innocent."

Sirius waved an impatient hand at Remus. "Oh, Moony, get a grip! This guy's a despicable piece of snot, you know that. We've almost done every trick in the book to persuade him to leave this school, yet he stays, waving his greasy head high in the air whenever he walks past us."

Harry felt a little miserable at Sirius' words. He knew Snape had never done anything to Sirius and his friends, yet here they were, talking negatively about him and discussing how they'd prank him almost everyday just for fun.

"But, has he done anything wrong to you guys?" asked Harry in a small voice, hoping to make Sirius and the rest realize that Snape didn't deserve that kind of treatment.

"Oh, no," said Sirius, biting into his cookie. "He's never done anything wrong to us."

"Although he _has_ been jealous of Prongs's Quidditch abilities for years," Peter put in.

"Not to mention my good looks," said James, grinning slyly.

"But he's never hurt you or played tricks on you, has he?" said Harry. "Why pull pranks on someone innocent?"

Sirius laughed softly. "Michael, get this: Do you know when you hate someone so much without any real reason? And you just want to make that person's life as hard as possible because you just want to teach them a lesson they half-deserve?"

Harry nodded uncertainly.

"_That's_ how we feel," said Sirius, his voice low. "You see, Snape's the kind of person who's just easy to hate. Not that he doesn't have a few good qualities, mind you, but--"

"What good qualities?" interrupted James. "Old Snivellus doesn't _have_ any good qualities, thank you very much. His best quality is probably his extraordinary ability to remain hidden behind a book for as much as six straight hours."

"--but still, there is something about him," continued Sirius, "something vile, something incredibly _despicable_, you know what I mean?"

"Er--yeah," said Harry resignedly. So that was how Sirius and James really felt towards Snape. No wonder they never really got to resolve their "conflict;" there was no room for acceptance in the first place. Sirius and James rambled on about the various pranks they'd pulled on "Snivellus" so far, occasionally sniggering and glancing in Snape's direction.

"I'm done," said Remus, licking off some cookie crumbs from his fingers.

"So am I," chorused Peter. "Anyway, now that we've had our stomachs filled, why don't we head over to the common room? I reckon Michael needs some rest after his trip. Er, you _will_ be staying in the Gryffindor dorm with us, won't you, Michael?"

Harry paused. He never thought about that. He decided to lie and say he _would _be staying with the Gryffindors.

"Excellent," said James. "Come on, we can help Michael unpack."

They rose, exited the hall, and ascended the giant staircase and followed the very familiar corridor (to Harry, at least) to the portrait of the Fat Lady.

"Wheezing banshee," said Sirius. The Fat Lady nodded and swung the portrait open, revealing the Gryffindor common room. The group strolled in. Harry looked around, and, just as he'd expected, saw that the common room looked just the same.

"This is the common room, Michael," said James, glancing around proudly. "Here, let's bring up your trunk…"

Sirius, Remus, and Peter stayed behind as James ascended the steps to the dormitory with Harry, holding one end of his trunk, and Harry, the other end. When they got to the boy's dormitory, Harry's trunk was laid down beside one of the beds, and his clothes were stashed in a chest in front of the bed.

"Come to think of it," said James curiously, "why are _you _wearing a Gryffindor robe, Michael? I mean, I never knew exchange students wore the same robes students at their new school wore…"

"Well, I had some Hogwarts robes made, just so I could fit in better with the crowd here," Harry said. "And for fun, I stuck this Gryffindor patch on my robes." He gestured at the lion symbol on his robe, and hoped James would buy his story.

"Wicked," said James, an expression of comprehension crossing his face. "That's real wicked of you, Michael." He slapped Harry hard on the back, grinning, then turned to exit the dorm. "Well, we'll let you get some sleep. If you want, you can walk with us to class tomorrow…"

"Oh, I can't," said Harry. "I won't be going to class; I'll be too busy walking around the school, taking pictures and making notes for my article.."

"Yeah, alright, then," said James, smiling. "Anyway, we'll see you tomorrow at breakfast, okay?" He turned and strode out of the door, leaving Harry alone in the dormitory.

He didn't really have any intention of going to sleep, but now that he thought about it, he decided a nice, long rest would do him good. He'd worked hard practicing and doing his homework for almost three weeks, and he figured his lack of rest could take its toll on him if he didn't get enough sleep now.

Jumping into bed and pulling the covers over him, Harry turned the day's events over in his mind. He now knew exactly what Sirius, and more importantly, his _father_, looked like. The thought that he had been in close quarters with two of the people he loved so much, had heard how their voices sounded, and had seen the way they acted, gave him a huge burst of fulfillment. He had also caught a glimpse of his mother when she was a young girl. He hoped he'd be able to see her again in the days to come.

He had also witnessed Sirius' and James's incredible loathing of Snape. Seeing them talk about Snape like that hurt him, and he felt as determined as ever to put an end to this dispute between them, not necessarily for his future school life, but for Sirius' and James's own good. Harry knew it wasn't his place to decide what others did and didn't do, but in this case, these people were his own relatives. Sirius and James were good people, and although he understood perfectly that they were real mischief-makers, Harry knew it wasn't like them to hate a schoolmate so much as to make their life stupendously miserable. It just wasn't their style.

Harry turned over on his side, closed his eyes, and slowly drifted to sleep. He dreamt he was in the Great Lake again, swimming with James and Sirius. Only this time, Lily was with them. She was doing a backstroke, grinning broadly, when suddenly she was pulled to the bottom of the lake by one of the giant squid's tentacles. James, Sirius, and Harry were horrified. Harry tried to swim down and save her, but he seemed to have lost all ability to move. He looked around at James, and deduced that he was in the same horrifying predicament, for his eyes were wide, staring at his limbs which seemed to have gone stiff. Sirius, on the other hand, could move perfectly. He dove down and grabbed Lily's arms, kicking the squid away. He brought her to the surface, climbed out of the water with the unconscious Lily in his arms, laid her down on the grass, and stroked her hair lovingly…

A voice somewhere in Harry's mind spoke. _This is going to be the longest two months of your life, Harry Potter._

_-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------_

Author's Notes:

Okay, this chapter didn't explain much, but I had to show the transition in the setting and characters, right? ;) The next chapter will be much more exciting, I promise you that. Anyway, on to the review thanks:

fallen816angel: I'm glad you like the time-travel idea! I like it, too. And, like I said, this is my first fic. Hope you like the rest of my story. :D

I'm not the weakest link: Thank you. :)

I can see Thestrals: Lol, I'm so happy my story kinda left you in suspense. ;) I'm glad you like it, and thanks for adding my story to your favorites!

rhythm emotion2: It's great you like my plot! :) Well, I came up with the time-travel thing because of this Archie comic strip I read, lol. I decided that since Harry was so depressed because of Sirius' death in OotP, why not give him a chance to at least go back in time and be able to say goodbye? :P Anyway, thanks for reading my story!

Yup, that's all for now. To everyone else reading my story, please review this! I'd really appreciate more criticism, tips, etc. Watch out for Chapter 4, aight! :D


	4. The Swimming Competition

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in this story except Lily's friends, Gary, Alison, and the Slytherin boy.

Yeah, I finally updated! Wahoo! Hope you all like this chapter. I think it's way better than the previous ones. As usual, my notes are at the end of the story. Enjoy! :)

**Chapter 4**

When Harry got up the next morning, he temporarily forgot what had happened the day before, and was ready to wake up to the sounds of Ron shuffling trying to get in his clothes, and Dean, Seamus, and Neville talking and bustling before breakfast. He then remembered that he was in the 70s, and had traveled back to this time period through the time warp he'd created. He had met James his dad, Sirius, Remus, and Peter, was currently going incognito under the alias Michael Preston, and was on a mission to bid Sirius farewell properly (although how he'd make that happen, Harry didn't yet know) and settle the dispute between him and James and Snape.

It was a nice, sunny Monday morning. The sun shone cheerily through the windows, and birds chirped and leaves swayed outdoors. The dormitory was empty, and Harry guessed that everyone else was already down at breakfast. He jumped out of bed, got into his "custom made" school robes, and checked his reflection in the mirror. He had previously decided that since he was supposed to be a different person while he was in this time period, he'd have to change not only his name and history, but his appearance as well.

He took out a tiny, circular case from his trunk, and from this, extracted a pair of blue contact lenses. He then applied the contact lens liquid and popped the lenses into his eyes, giving him eyes of light, sparkling blue. As he did not need his glasses anymore, Harry took them off and stashed them away in his trunk.

Turning back to the mirror and whipping out his wand, Harry stared at his wild, unruly hair. He then tapped the tip of his wand against his head, reciting a Smoothing Charm, and the unruly tangle was gone, replaced by smooth, shiny hair that had the same slicked-back appearance as his mortal enemy's, Draco Malfoy.

Harry grinned at his reflection. _Not bad, _he thought, _considering I'm in a Malfoy hairdo._ He thought he looked like a young Elvis Presley (the famous 80s Muggle rock and roll star, whose records Uncle Vernon kept in a neat box next to the ancient turntable in the living room). _I could actually keep this look of mine when I'm back to the present, _he added, chuckling softly.

Descending the stairs for the common room, Harry noticed a large group of Gryffindors crowded around the Gryffindor bulletin board. Sirius and James were a few meters away from the crowd, talking excitedly.

"Oy, Michael!" James called. "Over here!"

"Wow, smashing new look," commented Sirius, grinning at Harry. "Have you gotten interested in a girl _already_?"

Harry laughed, snorting. "'Course not; I just thought I'd change my appearance…you know, 'cause of my being in a new place and all."

"Ah," said James. "Well, I have to say it looks awesome, Michael."

"Ditto," agreed Sirius.

"Thanks. Er..what's going on?" asked Harry, jerking his head towards the group huddled around the bulletin board. "What does that bulletin say?"

Sirius grinned wickedly. "It's announcing the annual Hogwarts Swimming Competition, which takes place on Wednesday," he explained. "This competition, Michael, is a two-day long swimming contest held amongst fifth, sixth, and seventh years, sponsored by Zonko's Joke Shop. The competition's gone on for a good fifteen years, and always takes place at the Great Lake."

"The contest goes on for two days because there's lots of elimination involved, too," James put in. "Only five students, provided they're old enough, may enter from each house. On the first day of the competition, the five students from each house are narrowed down to three, and those three are narrowed down to one."

"The final four from each house will compete in the big race the next day," said Sirius. "He who wins the big race will be the Hogwarts Swimming Competition Champion for that year, and he and whichever house he belongs to get a nice, shiny, golden trophy."

"Plus, a feast in honor of the winning house takes place the next day at the Great Hall," said James, a maniacal gleam in his eye.

"None of us has ever entered before, but Prongs here's thinking of joining this year," Sirius announced, elbowing James. "He's a pretty good swimmer, you know, and he reckons he could get one step further impressing Lily if he does this."

Harry had to keep himself from laughing. _My dad was _crazy_ about my mother! Not even Sirius mentioned how gaga he was over her._

"Come to think of it, I _am _joining," said James, his eyes twinkling challengingly. "This isn't just to impress Lily, you know. Just think of the honor I'll be giving Gryffindor if I won this thing."

"I think you're right, Prongs," said Sirius, nodding. "I also think it'd be great if you could wipe the stupid smirk off the Slytherins' faces."

"What do you mean?" said Harry, tilting his head curiously.

"Slytherin's won every race over the past five years," said James darkly. "Most suspect their wins are all the cause of cheating and such, but there's no evidence to support that, so the Slytherin players never get disqualified. And now that the next competition's drawing near, Slytherins are walking around the school with their heads held high, as if they owned the place."

"If they held their heads any higher, they'd snap right off," commented Sirius. "Which isn't much of a bad thing, come to think of it," he added as an afterthought.

"We've had to endure five years of having all the delicious food at every after-race feast spoiled by the lousy green and silver hall decor and the Slytherins' horridly triumphant faces, staring condescendingly at the rest of the houses," said James, cringing disgustedly.

"Pretty nasty," added Sirius, staring into space as if reliving the whole experience at that moment in his head.

"--Well, what about you, Sirius?" said Harry, changing the rather unpleasant subject. "Are you entering the competition?"

"Nah," replied Sirius with a wave of his hand. "Swimming's not my thing. Besides, I want to watch Prongs from the sides and cheer him on instead of compete with him!"

"Ah, such a loyal friend Padfoot is," sighed James dramatically. "So kind and valiant.."

"True," said Sirius, snickering.

"Now, if you'll excuse me for a bit," said James, pulling out a quill from his robes, "I have some signing to do."

He ambled towards the piece of parchment pinned to the bulletin board, which contained the announcement and a set of blanks on which contestants were to affix their signature. James reached up and signed his name on the third blank.

An excited whoop rose out of the crowd. "Everyone, look! James is entering the competition!"

Smiling faces turned toward James. "Way to go, James!" another voice shouted.

"Old Prongs is really popular around the school," Sirius whispered to Harry, grinning.

The crowd near the bulletin board lifted James up on their shoulders, and, as if James had already won the competition, began chorusing, "James! James! James! James!…"

James was grinning from ear to ear, and after persuading the throng to let him down, beckoned Sirius and Harry back to the bulletin.

"Hmm," he said slowly to the others, rubbing his chin and pointing to the two signatures preceding his own. "Looks like ol' Gary Shaw and Alison Cooper have already signed up."

"They're tough competitors, Gary and Alison," commented Sirius. "But not as tough as you, Prongs. You'll beat everyone else in the race, I know you will."

"Yeah, make us Gryffindors proud, James," said a boy, who was seated in an armchair, reading a book, and was apparently listening in to their conversation. He edged closer to James and the rest. "I don't know what I'd do to myself if Slytherin won for the sixth time in a row."

He shuddered and went back to his reading.

"Yeah…well, I think it's time for some breakfast," announced Sirius, clapping James and Harry on the back. "I'm rather in the mood for bacon and eggs today. Hope it's on today's menu…Come on!"

The three boys exited the common room and headed for the Great Hall.

"So, who was the last swimming race champion?" asked Harry, as they descended the great marble staircase.

"There's your answer right now," said James grimly, staring at a figure just meters ahead of the group, heading up from the dungeons towards the Great Hall. It was a tall, burly sixth year boy, with shiny, silver, shoulder-length hair. Harry could just make out his steely gray eyes as the boy drew nearer and nearer. It was Lucius Malfoy. He bore an infallible, rather ominous resemblance to his own son (although he didn't exist yet), Draco.

The young Lucius, spotting James and Sirius, puffed out his chest and trod importantly towards them, his cold eyes glinting with malice.

"Ah," he said, smirking at the three, although he did not know who Harry was. "The dream team, Sirius Black and James Potter. Tell me, when are you the two of you getting married? Soon, I suppose."

"Oh, we'll give you a call when that happens, Lucius," said Sirius coolly. "Don't expect an invitation, though."

Lucius laughed softly. He was inches taller than Sirius and James, and looked down on them from his steely eyes. "Well, I expect the two of you will be watching me again this year, as I help Slytherin win the Hogwarts Swimming Competition for the sixth year straight. Needless to say, I don't need any of you there to see me bag the trophy, but I guess two more devoted fans won't hurt."

Harry felt a twinge of annoyance at Lucius' words. It was easy to tell from whom Draco had inherited his arrogant demeanor.

"And who is this?" Lucius continued, his eyes landing on Harry, gleaming with dislike.

"This is Michael Preston," said Sirius, glaring boldly at Lucius. "He's an exchange student, and don't even think about creating _trouble_ for him, Malfoy."

"We'll be watching you," said James firmly, "and if we see you picking on our friend, you'll be so, so sorry you ever did."

Harry, feeling increasingly proud of his dad and godfather, spoke up. "James is entering the competition, so you better train long and hard, Lucius Malfoy. Although you probably won't need to train as James will beat you anyway."

Sirius and James grinned. Lucius's mouth thinned. He turned smugly towards James. "Good luck, then, Potter. I dare say you'll need lots of it on Wednesday."

With that, he turned and stomped off to the Great Hall.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next day, Sirius and Harry helped James train and polish his swimming strokes at the Great Lake, in preparation for the competition. Lily Evans and her group of friends was sitting by the lake as usual, and, instead of gossiping and telling stories like they usually did, took to watching James train, with eager smiles on their faces. Seeing Lily watching gave James a burst of confidence, and by the end of the training session, felt he was as good a swimmer as ever and would be unbeatable the next day.

Numerous other race contestants were training in the lake as well, including Gary Shaw and Alison Cooper, who were both fifth years. They and Harry were introduced to each other, and Harry found them to be very nice people. They were excellent swimmers, and Harry felt James surely had tough competition.

That same day, Harry was formally introduced to Lily and her friends, Arianne Richards, Selma Shaw (who was Gary's older sister), and Helene Hunter. James and Sirius were stuttering profusely as they introduced Harry to the girls and made small talk, and this caused the girls to giggle madly, as if they thought the boys were some sort of freaks. As the latter turned to leave, Lily called out and wished James good luck. James, still in his wet swimming trunks, walked with a spring in his step all the way back to the castle, humming jovially beside Harry and Sirius.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"This is _the_ day, boys," announced James with a grin the next day, slipping his pale blue swimming trunks underneath his school robes. "This is the day I conquer all, become this year's Hogwarts Swimming Competition champion, and win Lily Evans's heart forever!"

Everyone else chuckled. Remus and Peter, who were in the library the whole day before working on a Potions project, had joined James, Sirius, and Harry in the Gryffindor common room. The race was to commence in fifteen minutes, and luckily, the weather was perfect for swimming, the bright sun bathing the grounds in cheery sunlight.

"You'll be awesome, mate," said Sirius, slapping his best friend on the back. "We'll be cheering you on! Break a leg, alright?"

"And remember that if you don't win, we'll all still love you," said Peter, grinning encouragingly.

"Thanks, guys," said James, smiling gratefully. "Now come on, let's get to the grounds and do this thing!"

The Great Lake was as sparkly as ever, the light wind gracefully blowing the clear water about, sunlight glistening on the water's surface. Benches that surrounded the lake and rose up from the ground (like the seats in a football stadium) were occupied by hundreds of individuals, students and teachers alike, yelling and cheering and calling out to the racers. Most held flags that waved in the wind and bore the faces of contestants they were rooting for. Almost all the Gryffindors, plus some Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs, were waving red and gold flags with James Potter's grinning face stamped on them.

A large banner bearing the words "16th Hogwarts Swimming Competition" hung from a pair of posts at the top of the benches. A commentator's stand lay just below the banner, a megaphone perched on a table.

The contestants were already slipping out of their robes and revealing their swimwear, rubbing their hands together and whispering words of encouragement to themselves. Harry, James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter walked onto the grounds, and were greeted by eager yells from fellow Gryffindors. From a distance, Lucius Malfoy, who was seated in the stands and was clad in dark green swim trunks and his hair tied, glared malevolently at James and his friends.

A teacher came over to James and handed him a red patch to stick to his trunks, which was to serve as identification of the players from each house. Harry noticed the rest of the contestants with either red, blue, yellow, or green patches on their swimwear.

"Er, Sirius," he muttered, "how long has wearing those color-coded patches been a practice in the competition?"

"Oh, since forever, I guess," replied Sirius, who was using his wand to flatten the red patch against James's shorts. "Mind you, I wasn't here during the first few years of this competition, but I know over the past six years, it's always been a practice."

Harry, Sirius, Remus, and Peter were then ushered to the stands to allow James to rev himself up. After wishing their friend the best of luck, they took the seats nearest the lake. Harry got a very clear view of the whole lake and the twenty small precipices laid at the starting point, from which the contestants would jump into the lake after the go signal. Harry spotted Severus Snape in a seat not very far from where he sat. Lily and her friends were in another corner of the stands, pointing out male contestants who were standing down by the lake and talking animatedly.

As he was seated on the edge of the bench, Harry spotted a square box lying on a table next to him. Looking inside, he found that the box contained the patches contestants were made to stick onto their suits. There were two yellow patches left.

Harry was about to turn back to the stands and search for more familiar faces, when he heard a crunch of soil behind him and to his left. Turning his head around slowly, he spotted a boy crouched low behind the table with the box containing the patches, his wand poised in his hand. Owing to the metal railing partly obscuring Harry from view, the boy did not see him staring, and apparently thought no one could see him. He raised himself a bit higher up, looked into the box, and slowly whispered an incantation, pointing his wand at the patches.

Shocked, Harry quickly looked around, hoping some other student, or perhaps a school authority, could see what this boy was doing. Everyone else seemed to be so engrossed in the race, oblivious to anything that was happening around them. Harry turned back to look at the boy. He had a satisfied smile on his face, and as he turned to crawl away, Harry spotted the Slytherin symbol on his robes.

Just as the Slytherin boy disappeared, a teacher approached the box and took out the two yellow patches. Harry tried to get her attention and tell her what he had witnessed, but due to the loud voices pervading the stadium, and because the teacher was moving very quickly, he could not make himself heard. The teacher walked over to two Hufflepuff girls and handed them the patches, which the girls promptly stuck onto their suits.

Harry's heart pounded. If he wasn't mistaken, a Slytherin boy had just sabotaged the contestants' patches--he, Harry, being the sole witness. He didn't know what danger the patches might do, but he had to make the racers take them off right now.

He was about to jump up and run to a school authority, when the commentator's voice roared through the megaphone and throughout the stadium. "Good morning, ladies and gentlemen!" he yelled, "Welcome to the 16th annual Hogwarts Swimming Competition! As you all know, this is a contest between the four Hogwarts houses, open to all fifth, sixth, and seventh years. Today, the final four, one from each house, will be determined, and these four will compete in the final race tomorrow.

"The five contestants from each house will now be narrowed down to three in the first race. Remember, the three from each house to reach the finish line, which is 50 meters from the start, the fastest, will move on to the next round. Now, will all the contestants please step up to the starting point! GOOD LUCK!"

Harry gasped. There was no time left to warn anyone about the patches. The racers, poised and grinning around at each other, were bent low on their precipice.

"Ready," said the commentator, "set…GO!"

A loud bang sounded, and as the crowd roared, the twenty racers dove into the great lake.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Review Thanks:

rhythm emotion2: Ah, thanks for pointing that out!

LimaBean: Heh, I'm glad you like my story, and I'm glad it's stirred a lot of interest in you!

Grey Werewolf: Xie xie! Lol. Thanks for reviewing this! :D By the way, Lily's hair's red, but I'd rather her hair were reddish-brown, or auburn. :)

Yep, that's all for now...Stay tuned for Chapter 5! :D


End file.
